Q: What is The Corruption of Kidiya Kitts about?
A: It centers around a young and successful basketball prodigy whose life gets turned upside down by a calculating seductress.
Q: What kind of mood were you hoping to accomplish with the score?
A: I was going for a dark and sexy-type score with a hint of mystery.
Q: .How did you become involved with the project?
A: Writer/director, Josh Mitchell, brought me onboard. He was familiar with my work, and felt this project would be right up my alley.
Q: You live in Oklahoma City, do you think this puts you at a disadvantage in the industry?
A: Perhaps a little, but distance isn’t as much of an issue with composers as it is with cast and crew. We don’t have to show up on set. There’s little need for the filmmaker and composer to actually be in the same room. All communication can be done online, even for spotting sessions (when a director and composer “get together” to watch the film and discuss where music should be placed and what kind of mood/feel it should have). It would be beneficial to be able to go to social events where I could meet people in the industry, but I’ve found that the internet has many places to find these filmmakers, so I don’t think living a distance away is much of an issue.
Q: What was the most challenging project you ever had to score?
A: I’d say the most challenging score to complete was the third film I did the music for, Allen Scales’ short film Blood Memory. It was a western/psychological thriller set in the 1800’s. The director wanted music kind of like John Corigliano‘s score in Altered States,which is amazingly unique, and very difficult to mimic. I still came nowhere near as close to the magic of Corigliano as I wished, but it actually turned out to be one of my favorites.
Q: What made you interested in composing music for film?
A: In the summer of 2000, my friends and I made a cheap-looking home movie, and I recorded a music track to it, which I thought was the coolest thing ever. Since then, I dreamed of writing music for movies like my favorite composers. Plus, I think most musicians will say that they’ve thought about it at some point.
Q: Who are some of your influences?
A: I get influenced and inspired a little every time I watch a new movie and hear the music, but Danny Elfman and John Williams are the two composers who got me to notice the music in movies. I don’t think they’re overrated at all. Elfman’s Batman and Williams’ Superman are still my favorite scores. There is actually a big list of amazing composers that inspire me like Elmer Bernstein, James Horner, Alan Silvestri, and many others.
Q: What kind of day job do you have and how does it influence your creativity?
A: I work part-time at the public library where I’m surrounded by movies, music, and books. I come home from work, hang with my family, and record music. Since I work so few hours there a week, the job thankfully has very little influence on my creativity.
Q: What do you like about the film industry?
A: My favorite part is probably the ability to build artistic relationships with filmmakers. It usually turns into a Hitchcock/Hermann or Burton/Elfman thing where I’m brought back to do most of their future films. I also like the fact that I can work for filmmakers anywhere in the world doing film scores.
Q: What would you change about it?
A: Film selection and ticket prices at the movies.